All posts tagged "tsa"

Trump DHS accused of retaliating against ICE observers by stripping travel rights

A new lawsuit is accusing the Department of Homeland Security of punishing protesters by taking away certain travel rights.

The Intercept, an online news agency, filed the lawsuit against DHS after the agency failed to respond to a records request made under the Freedom of Information Act. The records related to reports that immigration agents have retaliated by taking away passports, TSA PreCheck, and Global Entry access.

The filing detailed how "a civilian observing ICE submitted a declaration stating that her TSA PreCheck and Global Entry were revoked three days after an encounter with immigration enforcement officials."

TSA PreCheck provides quicker airport security screening, while Global Entry allows expedited entry into the U.S. The cases mentioned in the Intercept filing mostly relate to left-wing activists and protesters.

"At least one prominent supporter of transgender rights has reportedly had her Global Entry and U.S. passport cancelled in the past few months," the filing added. "To shed light on the federal government's actions that may impact the travel and privacy rights of civilian protesters, Plaintiff filed several FOIA requests."

The filing also brings up how federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a component agency of DHS, confronted people recording or protesting agents deployed by the Trump administration to Minnesota in January.

One video mentioned in the filing shows "federal agents recording a protester, saying that they were recording her 'because we have a nice little database, and now you're considered a domestic terrorist.'" The Intercept's FOIA request seeks records about the creation of that database.

Another recording cited in the filing depicts a federal agent saying, "Well, this person is gonna have a hard time traveling from now on" after taking a photo of an ICE observer's license plate.

TMZ shames Senate Republicans fleeing DC without TSA deal

TMZ called out a pair of Senate Republicans for hitting the road and leaving Washington, D.C., without a TSA deal on Friday.

House GOP lawmakers on Friday rejected a DHS funding bill passed overnight in the Senate, which would exclude federal immigration enforcement agencies from the major spending bill. The move left House Republicans fighting over the next moves just as GOP senators had left town for Easter recess.

TMZ caught Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) heading to board a plane early Friday at Reagan National Airport and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) seated on a flight.

"Well, we'll see. We made some temporary headway but we got a lot of work to do still," Thune told a reporter while walking to catch his flight.

The senators were criticized for leaving Capitol Hill while thousands of federal workers went unpaid for the fourth week since the partial government shutdown started.

The Department of Homeland Security on Friday said that TSA workers were expecting to receive payment as soon as Monday, following President Donald Trump's executive order to pay Transportation Security Administration workers, CNN reported.

🚨 Senators Ted Cruz and John Thune leave D.C. amid the government shutdown.

Exclusive details: https://t.co/CUnFtLge3r pic.twitter.com/q9B9IDLAsw
— TMZ (@TMZ) March 27, 2026

Senate Majority Leader John Thune also booked it out of D.C., hopping a plane Friday AM at Reagan National Airport.

🎥: Fox News pic.twitter.com/lurX3VOOIZ
— TMZ (@TMZ) March 27, 2026

ICE insider claims they had 'no idea' Trump team plotted new deployment for agency

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent has claimed the department had no idea they would be deployed on a new operation.

Donald Trump's team has placed ICE agents in airports across the country to assist the Transportation Security Administration during the Department of Homeland Security's shutdown. TSA employees have been increasingly absent as the shutdown affects their pay, with about 3,400 TSA agents calling out of work on Sunday, according to BBC.

Republicans and Democrats have yet to find an agreeable fix to the DHS bill, which so far includes funding for ICE agents. Dem representatives have held firm and refused to vote through the current bill proposal.

As a counter to TSA employee callouts, the Trump administration has called in ICE to assist security check-ins. New York's John F. Kennedy Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, have seen security check-in queues lasting several hours.

The Atlantic staff writer Nick Miroff claimed that ICE agents currently deployed in airports across the country had no idea they would be aiding the remaining TSA agents. He said, "Well, first, my first thought was, This isn’t gonna help.

"Second was that this is consistent with the way the president views ICE as more than like a personal army, kind of like a personal errand corps, where he needs some kind of job done and he wants the optics of toughness, he just calls on ICE, which, once again, is just a gross misunderstanding of what that law-enforcement agency’s role is.

"And so, over the course of last weekend, I initially wrote to some of my ICE sources, and they had no information about it; they had no idea what the operational plans were gonna be."

Miroff went on to suggest that the deployment of ICE at airports is a test of how a similar deployment may affect the midterm elections.

He said, "The kind of darker interpretation of this is that this is a test run for the president to deploy ICE officers to polling stations and intimidate voters in November. That’s yet to be seen.

"But it is a reminder of the way the president views DHS, but specifically ICE, as a kind of personal federal force that is at the beck and call of the president and he can just deploy whenever he needs a tough job done."

Trump ally Steve Bannon has claimed the deployment of ICE in airports is a stress test of how the agency could be used in the midterm elections. "The ICE agents at the airports to help out, and remember they said they're not going to work the x-rays, it's too complicated, they're not trained for it, but they're trained to — wait for it — check IDs," Bannon said on the Monday edition of War Room.

"That's why it's perfect training for the fall of 2026. This is why it's such a brilliant, this is another 5-D chess move for President Trump."

Kristi Noem accused of lying to Congress about ‘top secret’ airport security flaws

Ousted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was accused of lying to Congress after a watchdog group had warned about "serious vulnerabilities" at airport security checkpoints in the United States.

The Department of Homeland Security's internal watchdog report revealed several concerns about the TSA's screenings at airport security lines, the new policy allowing passengers to keep their shoes on, according to CBS News. Five months after the memo, the agency still hadn't responded to the findings.

Noem, during a hearing with congressional leaders, told lawmakers that “all of the recommendations” outlined by the inspector general were addressed.

But that wasn't the case. And according to a March 4 memo from Inspector General Joseph Cuffari, he wrote that his office had no written or oral evidence that suggest those security issues were addressed, The Daily Beast reported.

A key finding in the report was designated as "top secret," limiting access to the information to only 13 people in the government. Cuffari told Noem that only "three Members of Congress; two employees in OIG; seven employees in the [DHS]; and one employee in the Executive Office of the President" had access to this information.

Cuffari was clear that Noem had not responded to the security concerns.

"I am writing to inform you that OIG has not received such information — written or oral — from DHS or TSA, despite our requests to the Secretary and you for that information," Cuffari wrote in his March 4 memo, which was addressed to senior TSA official Ha Nguyen McNeill. "Please promptly provide an original copy of the documents describing any actions the Department and/or TSA took on each of the recommendations and any supporting evidence."

TSA staffing collapse threatens to destroy crown jewel in Trump's year

The Transportation Security Administration staffing crisis has hit a point that could impact one of the biggest events in President Donald Trump's year: the FIFA World Cup.

Ha Nguyen McNeill, the acting TSA administrator, said during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Wednesday that more than 480 TSA workers have quit since the DHS shutdown started 39 days ago, Politico reported. She cited workers who sleep in their cars, sell their own blood or plasma, or take on second jobs to try and make ends meet while the government shutdown has left them unpaid.

And with millions of people set to arrive in the U.S. for the major sporting event, he flagged looming chaos.

“This is a dire situation. We are facing a potential, perfect storm of severe staffing shortages and an influx of millions of passengers at our airports in less than 80 days,” McNeill said.

Hiring and training new TSA officers generally takes about four to six months, which is approaching the time of the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

“If we see any spikes [in attrition], we’re going to have to pivot and assess how we are going to staff the FIFA locations adequately,” McNeill said.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, marking a significant international sporting event that Trump has boasted will bring millions of visitors to North American venues during the summer months.

"McNeill warned that any officers the agency hires in the coming months won’t be ready to work checkpoint lanes during the FIFA World Cup this summer," according to Politico.

More officers have called out during the stalemate, especially at major airports, which has prompted security screening lanes to consolidate, resulting in longer lines and wait times. Smaller airports have considered closing if they can't have enough staff, she explained.

If the shutdown continues through Friday, the TSA workforce was expected to lose an estimated $1 billion in missed paychecks.

Trump's airport move just laid bare a massive MAGA lie: columnist

After months of saying that ICE agents need to wear masks so they don't get doxxed, President Donald Trump said this week that they should not wear masks while working at airports.

In an MS NOW opinion piece from Jarvis DeBerry, the opinion editor described how Trump had reversed his initial stance on masks, and noted the hypocrisy of this move considering that law enforcement officers across America go to work daily with their names on their chests and faces visible.

And as the partial government shutdown hits the 40-day mark and airport security lines leave lengthy wait times — while TSA staffing shortages continue and workers go without pay — the move to bring ICE agents to airports has raised questions about why Republicans have argued the federal officers need to conceal their identities.

"During the ongoing shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, Democrats have demanded reforms that include requiring ICE agents to show their faces," DeBerry wrote. "Trump’s social media post on Monday signaled to Democrats that talk of doxxing was always a ruse and that facial coverings for ICE officers aren’t non-negotiable, as Republicans have previously insisted."

DeBerry explained how MAGA's argument that ICE agents feared for their personal safety hasn't held up.

"To argue that ICE agents are vulnerable to doxxing by showing their faces is to argue that all law enforcement officers who show their faces are," DeBerry wrote.

And by saying ICE agents don't need to wear masks at airports, Trump has admitted something else, DeBerry wrote.

"The president’s opposition to ICE agents wearing masks in airports seems to be his acknowledgment of the sense of terror and unease masked agents can evoke," DeBerry added. "But at the same time, Trump asking those same agents to keep their masks on outside airports is an admission that he’s fine with ICE provoking fear and trepidation everywhere else."

'Thrilled' Dems believe 'desperate' Trump just handed them a gift they didn't ask for

Democrats were reportedly sensing potential spring break travel pandemonium and further political fallout over President Donald Trump's decision to send federal immigration agents to airports, an analyst reported on Monday.

Author Rachel Bade wrote in a Substack post how Trump could be heading for a "rude awakening" this week as Democrats call his bluff over whether to fund the Department of Homeland Security amid the partial government shutdown. The president's move to bring U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents was expected to backfire as Democratic lawmakers were apparently predicting how voters would respond, and Democrats wouldn't be pushed to bow down to Republican demands.

"Publicly, Democrats are calling the move ridiculous. Privately, though? They’re thrilled," Bade wrote. "The way they see it, Trump’s move screams desperation and that the White House is eager to resolve this issue before the spring break travel season."

Democrats expected the administration's response to the unpaid TSA workers to create another ripple effect.

"If the White House is this rattled, Dems can squeeze even harder," Bade wrote. "Some are even betting Republicans will cave as soon as this week."

Several Democratic sources on the Hill told Bade what could happen next.

"Democrats doubt the administration is tone deaf enough to have ICE agents carry out immigration enforcement at airports," Bade wrote. "They’re skeptical agents will be checking travelers’ immigration papers, for instance. But even just the sight of ICE hanging around doors and exits will spook Americans, they insist — and make GOP immigration policy look even more chaotic and personal."

It could come down to public perception.

"One Democratic source put it to me this way: The public stopped trusting Republicans on immigration when people started seeing the chaos up close — in places like Minnesota, where enforcement hit home," Bade explained. "ICE showing up at airports would thrust the issue from the abstract into the everyday lives of millions of Americans, they argue."

TSA agents sell their blood for gas to get to work — where Trump isn't paying them

The financial situation among some Transportation Security Administration employees has become so dire that they are selling their blood to afford to get to work — where President Donald Trump has been forcing them to go unpaid during the ongoing government shutdown, according to a report.

The partial shutdown amid a Department of Homeland Security spending stalemate has entered its second month, and has pushed 50,000 TSA workers to continue working without paychecks, The Daily Beast reported. It's also the third time in the last year that the TSA employees have had to work without pay during a government shutdown.

Acting Deputy TSA Administrator Adam Stahl told CBS Mornings during an interview on Wednesday that the situation has become very difficult for some workers.

“We have individuals sleeping in their cars, drawing blood to afford to pay for gas to get to work,” he said.

“Our people are hurting,” Stahl said.

He also told CBS News that there is a growing concern over the number of TSA employees calling out sick, saying that "there could be scenarios where we may have to shut down airports."

Meanwhile, Democrats and Republicans have continued a standoff over DHS funding. Republicans have refused to accept demands from Democrats to secure the funding, including forcing federal immigration agents to obtain judicial warrants before entering private residences and a ban on masks following the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, who were killed by agents in Minneapolis.

Trump told TSA workers last week to continue working without their pay — and vowed he would backpay them.

“Keep fighting for the USA. GO TO WORK!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “I promise that I will never forget you!!!”

MAGA in frenzy as DHS shutdown leaves angry Americans stuck in airport chaos

Hours-long passport queues and hold-ups as a result of the government shutdown have left the GOP livid — and members are now trying to blame the Democratic Party.

The partial shutdown has seen an increase in wait times for travelers, with the official Homeland Security X account posting a video of hundreds of people queued up. They wrote, "SECURITY LINES OUT THE DOOR. Americans are now missing their flights because of the Democrats' shutdown of DHS.

"Their political stunt is forcing patriotic TSA officers to work without pay — leading to financial hardship, absences, and crippling staffing shortages. Enough is enough: Democrats must fund DHS NOW."

Fellow Republican representatives also called on the Democratic Party to push the bill through the House and end the partial shutdown — despite the GOP holding a majority in both the House and the Senate.

Lauren Bis, a spokeswoman for the DHS, also backed the Homeland Security's statement when speaking to The Daily Beast. She said, "These political stunts force patriotic TSA officers, who protect our skies from serious threats, to work without pay.

"These frontline heroes received only partial paychecks earlier this month and now face their first full missed paycheck, leading to financial hardship, absences, and crippling staffing shortages."

The official TSA account has also thrown its support behind the Homeland Security post. They added, "Enough is enough. The Democrat shutdown of DHS must end!"

Republican Party rep Ken Calvert has also criticized the shutdown, adding, "As we get closer to the busy Spring Break travel season, airport delays for you and your family will only grow worse because Democrats refuse to join Republicans in funding our TSA agents."

Fellow GOP reps are up in arms about the shutdown too, with Louisiana rep Jeff Landry saying the Democrats "have no shame" in continuing the shutdown to win "political points". Ted Cruz, the GOP rep for Texas, added, "The Dem shutdown of DHS NEEDS TO END."

Democratic Party Congressman Troy A. Carter has since called on the GOP to work with reps to bring the shutdown to an end.

He wrote, "Republicans are refusing to negotiate to stop this shutdown because they don’t want to hold @DHSgov accountable for ICE agents MURDERING U.S. citizens.

"Our TSA workers at MSY deserve to be paid, and Republicans need to stop trying to rewrite the truth and work with Democrats to end this shutdown to make it happen."

Nancy Mace berates police and TSA during curse-laden airport meltdown: report

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) lost it and berated TSA agents during a meltdown at the Charleston International Airport on Thursday, according to reports.

Mace, who is running to be governor of South Carolina in 2026, "cursed at police officers, making repeated derogatory comments toward them, according to a Wired report published Friday after the organization issued a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain a police report.

"The report says that a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) supervisor told officers that Mace had treated their staff similarly and that they would be reporting her to their superiors," WIRED reports.

Officers spoke with a TSA agent, who said “he was very upset with how she acted at the checkpoint.”

"This supervisor, according to the report, told the officers that Mace had 'talked to several TSA agents the same way' and that they would be 'submitting a report to his superiors about her unacceptable behavior.' TSA agents are not currently being fully paid, due to the ongoing government shutdown," Wired reports.

Charleston County Aviation Authority Police Department police officers were reportedly told that Mace would arrive at the airport in a white BMW at 6:30 a.m. Thursday, and that they would escort her from the airport entry.

"Around 6:35, the report says, they were told she was running late; they never saw the car arrive," according to Wired.

When she arrived, she did not arrive in a white BMW, but instead in a gray or silver vehicle at 6:51 a.m.

"During the escort, Rep. Mace was talking loudly using profanity at times for others to hear,” according to a police report obtained by The State. “It appeared she was either dictating a message into her phone or talking to someone about the situation.”

In another, separate memo written by Officer Aaron Reed to a police lieutenant, Reed says Mace was “loudly cursing and making derogatory comments to us and about the department.”

Mace has taken to X to complain about the lack of security upon her arrival, sharing a surveillance video.

"And for the FAKE NEWS: This is the entrance ALL Members of Congress use at the airport. Are you going to write that Senators Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott use the same entrance or no? Asking for a friend @postandcourier," Mace wrote.